[About 35 to 40 percent of Purush Spandana will be purchased by women, who hope that by casually leaving a copy around the house, their husbands, fathers-in-law or sons may give it a glance. (This year's 192-page edition will be available for 90 rupees ($1.65) in Maharashtrian bookstores through December.)]
By Jen Swanson
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| MAVAIndia Web siteThe cover of the Diwali edition of Purush Spandana, a Marathi language magazine. |
This Diwali, while boys set off firecrackers and aunties light diyas and
lanterns, Harish Sadani, looking rumpled as would any editor/publisher nearing
a deadline, finally finds himself able to breathe. That's because Mr. Sadani,
who runs a nongovernmental organization in Mumbai known as MAVA (Men Against
Violence & Abuse), has just printed off the final pages of Purush Spandana,
an annual magazine, or ank, printed especially for Diwali.
The Maharashtrian
tradition of giving anks at Diwali, a major gift-giving holiday, goes back just
over a century. But of the estimated 400 anks printed each fall, only Purush
Spandana, which translates roughly to "Male Vibrations," speaks
directly to men, although not through scantily clad cover models, a distinction
that sets it apart from other anks in the shop.
The goal of the
periodical, a collection of articles, short stories and poems penned in Marathi
by Indian authors from around the state, is to get people to think."We
wanted to create a safe, nonthreatening space to address issues of masculinity
in a contemporary context," said Mr. Sadani. "Now readers can read a
story about a man who has overcome patriarchy in his own life, and ask himself,
'If he can question his outlook, why not me?' "
About 35 to 40 percent
of Purush Spandana will be purchased by women, who hope that by casually
leaving a copy around the house, their husbands, fathers-in-law or sons may
give it a glance. (This year's 192-page edition will be available for 90 rupees
($1.65) in Maharashtrian bookstores through December.)
Now in its 17th year,
the magazine will explore in its latest edition the concept of family, as well
as male-female relationships, a theme intended to encourage readers to
"move past the stereotypical thing, beyond blood, kinship and
wealth," as Mr. Sadani puts it, and "to consider family in a new
way." Inside, an engineer writes of finding a brotherly connection with a
fellow orphan and outcast, who later turns out to be a gigolo. Another man
describes his role as one half of a DINK, or "Double Income No Kids"
family, an increasingly common family unit in 21st century India.
An elderly woman,
unwanted by her father, recalls being rescued as an infant by her grandfather;
now with two grown sons living in the United States, she compares the
relationships with all the different men in her life. In Mumbai's red-light
district, a journalist recalls a lonely child playing with a one-rupee coin
while his mother entertains clients upstairs; a different writer reports on the
ambiguity of familial relationships in India's transgender community, outcasts
typically dismissed from the accepted family system.
"Family is a
relationship, but doesn't have to take place in the traditional sense,"
said Ravindra Rukmini Pandharinath, co-editor of Purush Spandana, explaining
that this year's theme was about finding ways to humanize the family system,
making space for groups like sex workers and prostitutes that are usually
excluded. "Everyone needs some sort of emotional support," he said.
"Can't family from different castes come together? Can't family go beyond
property?"
Past issues have
explored the intricacies of friendship and caste; last year's ank examined
sexuality, with the image of a half-male, half-female deity dancing on the
cover - "like a yin and yang, since everyone shares masculine and feminine
traits," explained Mr. Sadani.
That same year, female
writers were invited to contribute for the first time. "Sexuality being a
core topic that touches everyone, it was important to see what women think,"
Mr. Sadani recalled, noting that the female authors, who come from a diversity
of professional fields and backgrounds, as do the male contributors, have added
a valuable perspective over the past two years.
Next year's theme is
up in the air, but Mr. Sadani said he hoped to explore religion and governance
in future issues, specifically the restrictions they impose on women.
 |
| Jen SwansonAn illustration published in the recent issue of the magazine, depicting the child of a sex worker trapped in a brothel. |
In 2007, MAVA and
Purush Uvach also published selected excerpts of Purush Spandana into an
English book, a collection titled "Breaking the Moulds." Three years
later, the pair brought out a second collection in Marathi, called "Prasha
Purushbhanache," which translates roughly to "Issues of Male
Consciousness."
Meanwhile, the ank
earns steady praise from local literary bodies, usually winning one or two
awards each year for content, editing or the uniqueness of the concept itself,
all while building on the state's long legacy of progressive literature and
social reform. This year, Mr. Sadani said he hoped Purush Spandana might also
win an award for its cover, a freehand drawing of an unconventional family (in
this case, baby birds in a nest) against a much larger world, where family
comes and goes but always comes home, inspired by the bright colors of the
rainbow, the symbol of gay pride.
"Maharashtra has
a long history of social reformers and leaders who have fought for women's
equality," said Mr. Pandharinath. "Not because they were looking at
women as objects of sympathy, but because they called it a human rights
issue," he said, referring to well-known Maharashtrian reformers like
Jyotiba Phule, a pioneer for women's education who opened India's first school
for girls in 1848, and B.R. Ambedkar, who fought for women's right to vote.
Thus, MAVA may be
India's first official "men's group," but it's also just the latest
band of Maharashtrian men who have fought, alongside women, for gender
equality, chipping away at the vast patriarchy that affects every member of
Indian society.
"Emancipation
isn't just a women's issue," said Mr. Pandharinath. Patriarchy also
oppresses men by making them unable to discuss their feelings without feeling
unmanly or weak, he said.
"Women are very
open and can discuss these matters, but men don't have the vocabulary," he
said. "They just don't know how to talk about these issues. This is about
giving men a voice, helping them to speak. We wanted to create a space for men
to talk in an open manner."
@ The New York Times
SRILANKA OPPOSITION SAYS 27 PRISONERS DIED IN A ‘MASSACRE’
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
SRILANKA OPPOSITION SAYS 27 PRISONERS DIED IN A ‘MASSACRE’
[Government
officials have said the clash erupted when prisoners attacked a search team
that went into the Welikada Prison in Colombo on Friday looking for narcotics
and communication devices. The prisoners armed themselves by breaking into the
armory, the officials said.]
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Mangala Samaraweera, a lawmaker for the United National
Party, said that he had been informed that most of the prisoners killed during
Friday’s clash had been shot by police commandos and soldiers.
“It’s a massacre that has to be condemned,” Mr. Samaraweera
said. “It shows the breakdown of the rule of law in the country.”
He said that the information that he had was that most of
the dead had been “coldbloodedly gunned down.”
He said his party had called for a parliamentary committee
to be appointed to investigate.
Government officials have said the clash erupted when
prisoners attacked a search team that went into the Welikada Prison in Colombo
on Friday looking for narcotics and communication devices. The prisoners armed
themselves by breaking into the armory, the officials said.
On Friday night, the prisoners were seen holding up assault
rifles from the rooftop and throwing rocks at prison officials.
Forty-two people, including police commandos and soldiers,
were wounded in the clashes.
Mr. Samaraweera said it was illegal for the military to
have been sent to intervene at the prison.
The opposition also says that prison clashes are frequent
in Sri Lanka and that their causes must be examined.
At least two prisoners died in another prison revolt in
June, and human rights campaigners say the inmates were beaten to death by
guards. The prisoners were said to have been linked to the Tamil Tiger rebels
who waged a long separatist war against the state before they were defeated in
2009.
The government promised an inquiry after the June riot, but
no results have been announced.
Other less-deadly clashes also took place at Welikada this
year and in 2010.
